Algebra Help

[markem]

Originally Posted by Darrell

So, if the equation is 2x X 4 = 100, will I always take the 100 and divide it by the number that was originally multiplied to get 100? In this case 4.

Yes, basically. You want to solve for the 'x', so you want to isolate it on one side of the equation and do appropriate add/subtract/multiply/divide until it is my itself.

Here is a slightly more complex example.

2x X 4 + 5 = 85

We want to simplify and getting rid of the "+ 5" on the left means that we subtract 5 from both the right and let sides of the "=" sign.

2x X 4 + 5 - 5 = 85 - 5
2x X 4 = 80

Now, just to simplify more straightforward, note that 2x really means "2 times x" so we can rewrite this as

2 X x X 4 = 80

Let's multiply the 2 and the 4 so we get 8

8 X x = 80

Now divide both sides by 8

x = 10.